


Surprises

by liionne



Series: horrifying house guests [2]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Avengers Tower, Domestic Avengers, Love Bites, M/M, Mild Smut, Minor Violence, Smut, Swearing, sort of
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-29
Updated: 2014-08-29
Packaged: 2018-02-15 08:08:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,063
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2221770
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/liionne/pseuds/liionne
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Steve's a potty mouth, and Bucky's raiding Stark's fridge in nothing but his underwear, and who knew that Steve would get very handsy after a game of Mario Kart?</p><p>Or: a re-write of <a href="http://archiveofourown.org/works/2157915">Expectations</a> from Steve & Bucky's point of view, with a few added scenes!</p>
            </blockquote>





	Surprises

**Author's Note:**

> I'm thinking about writing an _actual_ sequel or something for this, if anyone is remotely interested. Any suggestion for said sequel are more than welcome! Also, I apologise for any mistakes. I've tried to do a quick read through but I've been awake for 18 hours on 6 hours sleep and I think I'm about to drop dead.

Steve huffs as he reads the text on his phone, and he pushes it away. Bucky is cautious as he sits down beside him. These days he's more Bucky than Soldier, or James- Steve has classified him into thirds, now. Bucky does it too, so he knows it's okay. There is Bucky, who grins and makes jokes and reminisces with Steve. Then there is James, who is quiet, dodges affection, and often needs to be given instruction to move. And then there is the Soldier, who snarls and bites and has to be kept out of the kitchen because if not, he'll try to get Steve in the back with the meat cleaver. He would go for the knives but Bucky asked him to hide those a very long time ago.

Not that it matters, now. Steve hasn't seen the Soldier for months. It's been a long time since Bucky came home; he showed up on Steve's doorstep with long, greasy hair, a three week old beard and clothes that were tattered and torn. He had told him that he remembered, and Steve had let him in, and that'd been that.

Now, Bucky shuffles along the couch, and leans his head on Steve's shoulder. He's definitely Bucky, then, Steve thinks. He looks up at him, and his eyelashes brush Steve's cheek momentarily.

"What was that?" He murmurs.

"Stark." Steve answers, and he watches Bucky's face crumple. He remembered that nightmare. Sometimes he gained memories through his sleep, and he had woken up screaming, Stark's name on his lips. Memories of a car crash and an explosion and him, the cause of it. "Tony. He wants to me to move into the tower."

"Oh." Bucky murmurs. "Are you gonna?"

Steve shrugs. "I was going to ask you. The lease on this place is almost up. And I think you can handle it, y'know." He turns to press a kiss to his forehead, and Bucky closes his eyes, a soft smile on his lips.

"Okay." He murmurs. Steve smiles. "I want to meet your friends."

"They're all crazy." He informs him, and Bucky chuckles.

"Aren't we all?" He asks. That's all they say about it, but Steve texts Stark back an hour or so later, and they next day they begin to pack the apartment up in boxes.

~*~

They pull up outside the tower, and Steve can tell that Bucky's nervous. He reaches out and takes a hold of his hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. "It'll be okay."

Bucky nods. "I know." He says. "'s long as you're there."

Steve smiles, and leans across the car to press a gentle kiss to his lips. "C'mon." He says. "Let's get going."

Bucky smiles, and as he slips out of the car, he ties his hair back into a little bun at the nape of his neck; it's a look he knows Steve loves. He's told him as much before.

Steve begins to unload the boxes. They don't have that much stuff, really. A lot of the stuff was given to them by the landlord at their old place, and thus had to stay at the apartment. Stark had assured them that there would be adequate facilities and extras for them at the tower.

"You and your born again boyfriend are up on the sixteenth floor, Rogers. If you need any help with the heavy lifting-"

Steve squints at Tony, as he stands just outside the doorway. "You'll help?" He asks, and he doesn't know why he bothers- he knows the answer. When does Stark ever do anything that doesn't benefit himself in some way? The thing in New York doesn't count, Steve reasons, because although it was pretty damn heroic, Stark still made it back (though that doesn't mean Steve doesn't respect him for it).

Tony smirks, and earns a huff from Steve. "Me? Heavy lifting? 'Course not. I'll call Clint and Natasha down."

"I think we got it, pal." Bucky interrupts, before Steve can say anything. He watches as Bucky pushes past him and into the tower, and he smirks. He knows what that means: Bucky doesn't think too much of the young Stark. But then again, Bucky doesn't seem to think much of anyone who's not Steve. Except Sam. He likes Sam.

Steve shuts the trunk of the car, beeps it, and heads inside. "Come up to the penthouse when you're done!" He hears Tony shout behind him. "We're having drinks!"

"When are we ever not?" Steve mutters under his breath, and he can distantly hear the sound of Bucky's laugh.

~*~

They don't go up for drinks. In fact, they don't leave their floor for the next three days, but that's all Bucky's fault.

Steve instructs him to go and unpack the bedroom whilst he unpacks the kitchen; they don't have much stuff, and Stark has gift-aided them a lot of things. They move a lot of things out, though- they switch in their user-friendly microwave, and a kettle they bought from the internet (that was a big day for them both) because they go through a surprising amount of coffee. They have plates and cutlery, which Steve is putting up into the cupboards when he feels arms slipping around his waist, and a warm, firm body pressing him into the counter.

"What do you think you're doing?" Steve asks, looking over his shoulder at Bucky as he closes the cupboard doors.

"I think we should christen the new apartment." Bucky says, his lips finding the pulse in Steve's neck and marking it with his teeth. Almost like an X marking the spot for later on, he thinks with a chuckle.

"I, uh-" Steve is suddenly feeling rather breathless, and he has a feeling that it's got something to do with the erection Bucky's grinding into his ass as he pins him to the counter. "That's a good- good idea, we should-"

"Stop talking, Rogers." Bucky scolds. He kisses him hard enough to make Steve melt, and that really does make him shut up, if only for a little while.

~*~

First, they christen the kitchen. Then the living room. Then the bedroom. And then the bathroom. It takes the entire three days, which they both spend in various stages of undress, and neither one sees any of the other Avengers.

Good.

It's after Round 3 on the living room floor - the carpet is so damn soft, soft as a marshmallow under Steve's back as Bucky pounds into him - that Bucky declares they've officially ran out of food. He's wearing his underwear, because there's a set of french doors leading off the kitchen to a balcony, and even the infamous Bucky Barnes isn't quite _that_ brave. Yet. He ties his hair back into a high ponytail, and squints at the inside of the fridge.

"I'm going up to Stark's penthouse to get food." He adds, and Steve's eyes widen.

Neither of them are in any state to leave their floor, and Bucky is already heading for the elevator. They're both only in their underwear, covered in love bites, and there's scratch marks down Bucky's back, which Steve had made with blunt nails whilst he tried not to hit his head off the leg of the coffee table. Scrabbling for purchase. He remembers that now.

Steve manages to jog after him, but he doesn't have time to put clothes on either. He's covered in love bites, and their are finger-shaped bruises on his hips. His lips are still kiss-swollen, but he manages to purse them as the doors open on the top floor of Stark - no, _Avengers_ \- Tower.

"Bucky-" He goes to grab his hand, but Bucky is already gone. He sighs, and hangs back. He can hear voices in the kitchen, and that's as much a reason as he needs for not going in.

He frowns, even pouts a little, and tries to listen. All he can hear is Bucky rooting around in the fridge, though.

"Get your ass in here, Stevie."

Steve groans, but like a good boyfriend, he steps forward. He walks quickly across the kitchen and tries not to look at Tony and the others as he plasters himself along Bucky's back.

"We have food in the apartment." He argues, and he knows because he managed to grab a look before running over to the elevator. They really do have food. Not as much food as is stuffed into this fridge, mind, but still- "Good food."

"Nu uh. Kid's got pop tarts. You never had pop tarts, Stevie?" Steve rolls his eyes, but Bucky doesn't see it. "They're good. And bananas- we don't have bananas."

"There's a reason we don't have bananas, Buck. They ain't the same anymore." His voice is low, full of Brooklyn twang. So is Bucky's, come to think of it. He hadn't noticed, until now, just how much his old accent had come back, with spending so much time with Bucky, his Bucky. He kind of lost that after being defrosted, but it's pretty nice.

Bucky piles a box of pop tarts, a bunch of bananas and a packet of bacon into his arms, and thrusts two mugs of freshly brewed coffee at Steve. It does make for good breakfast, actually, except-

"Oh my god!"

Steve comes running into the living room. He's still only wearing his underwear, but now he's got an apron on top - it's pink and frilly and was a housewarming present from Natasha. Bucky has produced a pair of sweats from somewhere, apparently, and he's looking at the banana in his hand with abject horror.

"You were right. These ain't bananas, Stevie. What the hell happened to bananas?"

He throws the banana at the bin, and manages to get it in, too. Sniper's aim and a metal arm, say no more. Steve just chuckles as he goes back to cooking the pancakes, the one thing they didn't actually steal from Tony.

~*~

Bucky was a dock worker, and he has the potty mouth to prove it. Steve had never been a potty mouth before, during the Battle of New York thing, but Bucky- well Bucky doesn't just bring out Steve's old, forgotten accent, he brings out his cuss words too.

In the weeks after their self-induced isolation, they've ventured up to the communal penthouse suite more and more. It's good. Good fun. With so many people crammed into the room, all lounging, it's a little more cosy. Steve loves cosy. It's nice, and it's relaxing-

Until Bucky gets the Wii out.

"If you fucking blue shell me one more time Buck, I swear to god I'm going to kick your scrawny- damn it!"

Bucky snickers, and Steve glowers at the screen. He's no good at Mario Kart, or games in general, for that matter. He can hijack a car and drive it across the country (and return it in one piece) but tell him to drive up rainbow road and he loses his shit.

"'m gainin' on you, Stevie."

Steve growls softly under his breath, and hears Natasha chuckle. He knows about her and Bucky, about their past; he knew, of course, about Bucky shooting her. The two of them - Bucky and Natasha as well as Bucky and Steve - talked about it after he remembered. Water under the bridge, apparently.

"No you fuckin' ain't, Buck. I swear to God if you even think about fuckin' over takin' me here I-"

Steve throws the controller down when Bucky overtakes him, and wins, for the hundredth time in a row. He grabs him by the front of his grey cotton v-neck and over to the elevator bank; he shoves him into the first one arrives, and manages to keep his cool right up until they get to their floor.

He pins Bucky to the wall and kisses him hard, teeth clacking and tongues twisting, hands grappling for purchase. Steve tugs Bucky's shirt up over his head and mouths at heated skin, eyes half-lidded but full of lust. Angry lust. He's still really freaking mad.

"Can't believe you blue-shelled me." Steve growls, his lips claiming Bucky's, swallowing the snicker he dares to make.

"Does Stark-" Bucky tries to speak, but Steve is yanking open the fly of his jeans and shoving his hand against the bulge inside his underwear. "- _oh_. Does Stark always look surprised?"

Steve huffs, palming Bucky through his underwear. "You really wanna think about Stark now."

"No." Bucky says on a groan, hips canting into Steve's touch. "No, I don't. I was just- just wonderin'."

"'s cause I said the word 'fuck' in his presence." The other mutters, and he shoves Bucky's jeans down around his knees, his underwear along with them as he wraps his hand around Bucky's cock loosely.

" _Fuck_." Bucky whines, and Steve grins, licking a stripe along Bucky's collarbone.

"Yeah," He agrees, as he begins to stroke him. "Yeah, like that."

They end up christening The Wall By The Elevator Bank that day, because they just can't make it to their room. The play Mario Kart again, but only when Bucky can walk properly.

~*~

Bucky is sitting at the laptop, his fingers moving swiftly over the keys. Steve has his book in his hand - To Kill A Mockingbird, a high school favourite, apparently, but he's loving it so far - and is about to head to the elevator when he realises Bucky isn't following. He frowns as he spins on his heels, but Bucky doesn't look up. Steve already knows that something is off. Bucky is like his shadow; it's only because he's still not so great with people who aren't Steve (or Sam, or Natasha). It feels weird not to have him following along behind.

"You coming?" Steve asks, concern in his tone. He frowns.

"No," Bucky answers, drawing out the sound. He gives Steve a sheepish smile that Steve _knows_ is fake - when he eventually looks up - and he adds, "I'm just not up to it today."

They made a pact a short while ago which specifies that, if Bucky is ever uncomfortable, or does't want to do anything, he just has to tell whoever is around him until he is removed from the situation. Steve doesn't argue, because of said pact. He can't question Bucky. So instead, he smiles softly, and he nods.

"Okay." He says. "I'll be up there if you need me."

Bucky nods, and goes back to typing, hitting a hundred keys a minute as he squints at the screen.

Steve has read a full chapter when the elevator doors open and Bucky charges out, nostrils flaring and hair whipping around his face as he crosses the room. Bucky's fist connects with Stark's face hard enough for it to make a soft cracking noise. Steve grimaces, sets his place into his book, and moves toward him fairly quickly.

"How fuckin' dare you. How fuckin' dare you say everythin' special about him came out of a bottle, how fuckin' dare you, you didn't even know him then, you didn't even-"

Bucky is hissing in Tony's face as he pins him to the wall, but this- this isn't the Soldier. This isn't even James. This is _Bucky,_ pure and simple. Steve has seen this rage before, but only in the Bucky that he rescued from Zola's lab. It scares him, just a little. Maybe this sort of anger was always there under the surface. Maybe he just never showed it to Steve, until he could no longer hide it.

Tony squeaks. "How did you find out about that?"

Steve suddenly understands what Bucky was doing before. He was hacking old SHIELD records, the only ones that still existed. There aren't many left, apparently, not secret ones. Natasha had made sure of that.

"Bucky."

He takes a hold of the metal hand and tries to edge between Bucky and Tony, but it doesn't work. Bucky doesn't budge.

"He was the best. He was the best guy. You're fuckin' wrong if you think otherwise and I swear to god if I ever hear you say somethin' like that again-"

"Buck, he didn't mean it." Steve murmurs, keeps his voice low, and even. He's trying to calm him down, trying so hard. "He didn't mean it, it was a fight, it doesn't matter."

"James. James, it's okay."

Steve is surprised to see Natasha hovering behind them, but she gives him a knowing look. She has been on the receiving end of the Winter Soldier's violence before.

"He was ten times better than you even before the serum, pal. You fuckin' say anythin' like that again-"

Bucky lets go and Steve herds him back, shepherds him back towards the elevator. He had known something was wrong. He should have asked, he should have made sure. He's an idiot.

"You're lucky he used his regular hand." He hears Nat say, just as the elevator doors shut.

Bucky is trembling, his hands curled into fists as he stands in an awkward looking stance, too tense and too coiled up. Steve reaches out, fingertips touching Bucky's flesh fist, and it instantly relaxes into his hand. He's the only one who has that affect on Bucky; he knows that as fact. It makes him feel good, right up until moments like these ones.

"Why did you do that?" Steve murmurs, and he moves to take his other hand too, standing in front of Bucky.

Bucky takes a deep, ragged breath, and says, "'Cause you're the best guy I've ever known, Stevie." Another deep, shaky breath. "And no one gets to call you names but _me_."

Steve chuckles at that, and he leans forward to press a kiss to Bucky's lips. He's sure he can feel a hint of a smile there, can see his lips just turning up at the edges as he pulls away. "Thanks for defending my honour." He murmurs. "Just don't be so violent next time, okay? Tony didn't know what he was saying, it was just a fight. I'm okay with it."

Slowly, Bucky nods, like he doesn't entirely agree but he's not going to argue. "You know you're the best thing that's ever happened to me, right?"

Steve is much more enthusiastic in his nodding. His heart swells, and his stomach back flips, but he nods. "Yeah, I know." He murmurs. He joins their lips in a kiss, the elevator doors opening behind them both. Neither one pays attention. "Ditto."


End file.
